He's Only My Mate
by Chinesemoon
Summary: Rumors force a girl to re-consider her feelings for her closest male friend. Friends, or more?


**He's Only My Mate**

By _Chinesemoon_

A/N: It popped into my head. Please review!!!

Disclaimer: Do I own this? I can't remember? Man, no more vodka for me... okay, FINE. SO MAYBE J.K.R. OWNS THIS, ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?!

_Ooh, ooh, ooh,_

_People are talkin', talkin' 'bout people,_

_I hear them whisper, you won't believe it._

_They think we're lovers kept under cover,_

_I just ignore it but they keep sayin' we..._

_laugh just a little too loud,_

_stand just a little too close,_

_we stare just a little too long._

_Maybe they're seein', somethin' we don't darlin'._

I had taken to the habit of eating dinner with him at his table. Since I wasn't _technically_ in his house, a few people glared at me when I dropped my tray on the table and plopped into the always empty seat next to his. A few people sneered when I smiled cheerfully at him, and we ate our dinner. The teachers never did anything about me sitting there, so I never thought a thing about it.

He had become my friend as of late. My mate, I called him. The end of the last year we got close, and by the start of the term in September, we were sitting on the train together, chatting it up quite nicely. I guess I never thought people would whisper about it. I guess I never thought people would talk about us in secret. I mean, who really cared what we did suddenly? They never did before.

I won't deny the fact that he became rather good looking this year. But how was I to know that before? It certainly wasn't as if I was hanging about for his looks. I never gave the way he looked a second thought! —_Usually_—

He was always quite friendly with me. Why not? I was his mate! I just also happened to be a girl as well, something other people didn't completely grasp. When we walked, he slung his arm around my shoulders. He would walk me to classes in the morning; it just so happened he had classes near by at the same time. It wasn't as if he were going out of his way...

I always thought his jokes were funny! I laughed so hard at some things he said sometimes. I laughed so hard in fact, that some other girls stared at me, then at him and threw me either a dirty look, a knowing look, or a combination of both. I ignored those people. Let them think what they like, we're just good mates, he and I.

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about_

_(Somethin' to talk about)_

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about_

_(Somethin' to talk about)_

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about_

_How about love?_

We used to link arms as we walked along the grounds. One time, it was cold outside, and he gave me his coat. He's sweet like that. At Quiddich games, I came to his bleachers, and he came to mine; we were always alternating. When either his or my team won, we both cheered loudly, ignoring other people's prying eyes. At one game, it was such a close match between our two teams, that I was happy when his team finally won.

I yelped and leaned over and kissed him quickly – on the lips. He barely stopped laughing and screaming to have a reaction, and I could barely stop shouting and cheering to think of being embarrassed. Others noticed however, and maybe that started it all.

When it finally started to snow, we both bundled up in lots of heavy clothing and went outside. We scooped up snow and had a snowball fight. The first one thrown hit him in the face. I ran for my bloody life. He shouted and tackled me. Several boys from his house were also hanging about, watching, laughing, and teasing. We had no time out of our fun to notice them nudging each other suggestively.

_I feel so foolish, I never noticed_

_You act so nervous, could you be fallin' for me?_

_It took the rumor to make me wonder,_

_Now I'm convinced that I'm goin' under._

_Thinkin' 'bout you every day,_

_dreamin' 'bout you every night._

_I'm hopin' that you feel the same way,_

_Now that we know it, let's really show it darlin'._

One day, I found something large and extreme out. I was walking in between the shelves at the Library with him. I told him to look on the other side of the room, and gave him a shove, sending him in another direction. I smiled to myself and reached up for a high book.

I frowned to myself, trying to reach it, but I was simply to short. That's when I heard two girls from his house, a blond girl and an Indian girl giggling. They were saying something... about him. Why were they talking about him? In curiosity, I leaned closer to the shelf to hear what they said.

"I tell you Levender, it's true!"

"Don't be thick Parvatti!"

"I'm not! She fancies him! And he fancies her, they must be having an affair!"

"You read to many romance books, you twit!"

"Then why are they always together, and flirting? I tell you, she fancies him!"

I stepped onto the bottom of the shelf, frowning and reaching up farther. Who fancied who? What were they talking about? I perked my eyes up, and the next words I heard left me simply dumb for weeks!

"I tell you Lavender, Luna fancies Neville Longbottom!"

I slipped on the step and many large books fell off the shelf next to me and made a loud noise, landing. I fell backwards, and against a hard object – with arms.

Neville caught me and heaved me back onto my feet. He grinned at me, his arms still around my waist. I stared up at him, feeling embarrassed and quite bewildered.

Lavender and Parvatti wondered into the next lane of books to see what made the noise. They saw me and him, standing in such an intimate position. Parvatti raised her eyebrows at Lavender. They both broke out in giggles.

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about_

_(Somethin' to talk about)_

_A little mystery to figure out_

_(Somethin' to talk about)_

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about_

_How about love?_

For the next couple of weeks, I thought good and hard about what I heard. Perhaps it was true what they said... about my fancying him, not the affair. Perhaps I did... but he was my mate! How could I like him? He could never like me back, Neville would never like me back. What a crazy idea! How absurd! How ridiculous! How oddly, _enchanting_...

I was embarrassed around him. When he touched me, I began to get hot. When he was whispering jokes in my ears, I shivered feeling his breath on my neck. I began stuttering around him. It was the oddest thing. As I was walking away from class in a green house, he creeped up behind me and grabbed me. I screamed so loudly then. When he set me down, my arms somehow around his neck, I couldn't think of anything to say.

I suddenly had the urge to tell him what I'd heard in the Library. I wondered if he'd laugh about it. If he did, I would laugh too. I was over reacting about such a little thing.

"Know what I heard in the Library not long ago?" I said, laughing to cover my nerves.

"What's that, love?"

"Ha, um. I heard some girls saying we _fancied_ each other! Ha, isn't that odd?"

I saw the frown glide across his face. I thought he might laugh, but then he grinned at me in a devilish way.

"Odd?" Neville said, pulling me a little closer. A few girls passed us as quickly as they could, giggling loudly. "It's not odd at all."

"Oh?" I said, raising one pale eyebrow.

"Not at all," My best mate Neville Longbottom said. "Because I _do_ fancy you."

He kissed me then, right after of a whole class of sixth years were let our. My year. They passed and stared at us kissing. A few smiled. The rest ignored us.

What? He's only my _mate_. And more...

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about babe,_

_A little mystery to figure out._

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk about,_

_How about love? Ooh..._

_Listen to 'em baby_

_(Somethin' to talk about)_

_A little mystery won't hurt 'em_

_(Somethin' to talk about)_

_Let's give 'em somethin' to talk_

_How about our love, love, love, love_

_whoowhoo mmmm hey oohh whoowhoo_

_About love, love, love, love_

_How about they talk about it? uh huh_

_Talk about love........_

FIN


End file.
